The present invention relates to centrifugal lubricant pick-up tube especially of the type suitable for use with hermetic motor compressor units.
In sealed units, such as hermetic motor compressor units, the proper lubrication of bearing regions is highly critical because the regions are not accessible for lubricants supplied thereto from outside the unit.
A known arrangement for supplying lubricant to bearing regions and hermetic units of the nature referred to involves the use of a pick-up tube which has one end immersed in a lubricant sump. The tube is mounted in the shaft of the unit and exerts a pumping action on the lubricant which flows through the lower open end of the tube. The tube is effective for propelling the lubricant upwardly and, via suitable passage means in the shaft, to the bearing regions to be lubricated.
Such pick-up tubes are disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,287,203, 3,125,184, 3,187,994, 3,194,490 and 3,410,478. The present invention is particularly concerned with improvement in the pick-up tube disclosed in the aforementioned copending application Ser. No. 722,641, filed Sept. 13, 1976. In the pick-up tube disclosed in that application, a diametrally disposed impeller blade was provided inside the lower cylindrical portion.